Where does “un-” come from?

un- (English) comes from Middle English un-, from Old English un-, from Proto-West Germanic un-, from Proto-Germanic un-, from Proto-Indo-European n̥-, from Proto-Indo-European ne — not.

un- (English): not; absent; lacking; not; negative; contrary to...

Definitions

  1. not; absent; lacking; not; negative; contrary to...

Ancestry of “un-”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishun-—
2Old Englishun-negation or absence of: un-, non-; bad; forms...
3Proto-West Germanicun-not, un-
4Proto-Germanicun-not, un-
5Proto-Indo-Europeann̥-not, un-
6Proto-Indo-Europeannenot

Words derived from “un-”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ne →Every word from Proto-Indo-European n̥- →Every word from Old English un- →